


Super Best Bros (Or Whatever)

by jewboykahl



Category: South Park
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Assumed Relationship, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, M/M, One Shot, Pining, Post-Canon, goofin, this is a lot of the main 4
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-13
Updated: 2021-03-13
Packaged: 2021-03-20 19:21:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,394
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30009744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jewboykahl/pseuds/jewboykahl
Summary: Kenny's friends are all back from college and enjoying his favorite summer event, the local fair. Rather than enjoy himself, however, he is forced to confront his feelings when Stan and Kyle are mistaken for a couple.
Relationships: Kyle Broflovski/Craig Tucker, Stan Marsh/Kenny McCormick
Comments: 4
Kudos: 18
Collections: JBK and Lotus’s Assumed Dating Prompts





	Super Best Bros (Or Whatever)

**Author's Note:**

> my bff lotus came up with this prompt idea for me so creds to thelotusflower she is big brained and I love her

Kenny never gets tired of the fair. Even several years into adulthood, he feels genuine excitement to hear the event has come to town, and he has a place to go for snow cones, turkey legs, amusement rides, and a monster truck derby—everything he loves about this country mashed into one loud, pollution-ridden, glorious festival. 

The part about it he loves even more is that it is a quintessential sign of summer, the time of year when all of his friends return from college for longer than a weekend at a time. Even his best friend, Eric Cartman, managed to score himself a significant scholarship to a decent school, much to everyone’s surprise (Kenny is still pretty sure he somehow scammed his way in). 

Despite his eagerness to spend the day there, he agreed to wait until Butters was off work and could join them. It was always strangely less chaotic when he joined, anyway. Though he could be a loose canon, Butters sort of tames the four of them. 

As soon as they get to the fair and endure the lecture from Kyle about not blowing $200 on booth games like last year, Kenny and Stan make a beeline straight for said booth games. Wasting time and cash on the stupid, rigged competitions was a guilty pleasure of theirs. 

Catching up with Stan has been Kenny’s favorite part of the summer for a while then. His first semester was unexpectedly hard. Kenny knew he would miss his friends dearly when they left him behind in South Park, but he was completely unprepared for the hole in his heart Stan left. It felt like he was missing an arm—and when he would come back, intense, unmatched relief washed over him. And the cycle continued, and will to continue, as he is only a junior now. Though he could surmise what these new feelings meant, he did absolutely everything in his power to submerge them deep, _deep_ down inside himself. 

“This is gonna sound weird and possibly gay, but I missed mountain air.” Stan says as the pair trace through the fair grounds to meet up with the other members of their friend group, who had texted to announce they were stopping to eat. 

Kenny snorts, “That is _painfully_ homosexual.” 

Stan barks a laugh and knocks into Kenny’s side, sending butterflies fluttering through his being. He continues, “It’s just _fresher_ , dude. I never thought I’d miss anything about Colorado, but there’s definitely that.” 

“Glad you don’t miss a certain something else also, Stanley,” Kenny scrunches his nose at him, half-joking, “something short and sexy and blond and right next to you.” 

“Oh, fuck off. Missing you goes without saying.” Stan chuckles, bumping shoulders with him again. 

Hearing little things like this make up for everything. Kenny smiles as they fall into casual conversation all the way to a series of plastic picnic benches set up beneath an enormous tarp. They have only a brief period of searching before they spot a large brunette man, an annoyed-looking redhead, and a shock of bleach blond hair. 

“What up, a-holes?” Cartman is the first to greet behind a grotesque bite of greasy turkey. 

Stan makes give a gag before spouting, “That is fucking disgusting, dude.” 

He takes the seat as far away from Cartman and his massive turkey-leg as possible as Kenny plops down beside Kyle on the edge of the bench.

“It’s actually super tasty.” Cartman corrects, providing a terrible slurping sound to punctuate his enjoyment. 

“And it _was_ wrapped in bacon.” Kyle informs them with an eye roll. 

“Not gonna lie, guys, that sounds pretty fuckin’ good.” Kenny proclaims, eyeing the meat. “How much was that?” 

“Are you kidding, you guys?!” Stan exclaims with a huff, “That is an animal's _leg!"_

“And it was wrapped in strips of another animal’s stomach. Your point?” Cartman poses with raised eyebrows. 

Stan sighs deeply and lets it go. Butters is eager to shift the topic, equally disgusted by Cartman’s choice of snack, “You fellas want to try out the new roller coaster?” 

Kenny grins, “I’m down.” 

“I don’t know, now I’m afraid the giant meat stick Cartman is beasting might come back up if we send him down a hill at 50 miles an hour.” Kyle quips. 

Cartman turns to him and opens a mouthful of dark meat, making a fake hurling noise and earns him a stiff arm from the redhead. Stan chuckles at them and shakes his head, nodding his head toward Kyle, “Is your boyfriend and his boyfriend joining us at any point?” 

“When Clyde gets off work.” Kyle answers as his leaning away from Cartman dips into Kenny’s personal bubble. 

The blond wraps an arm around Kyle’s shoulders and grants him a smirk. “I can’t wait. I haven’t gotten flipped off by Craig in way too long.” 

“I ain’t seen Clyde since he started teaching PE at the elementary school!” Butters exclaims, shaking his head, “Can you believe he graduated early?!”

“No,” Kyle snaps bitterly, “but I can believe South Park was so desperate for teachers they hired him on the spot.” 

“That’s good for him, man. I bet he’s awesome.” Stan declares. 

Cartman snorts, “Yeah, he gets to hang out with a bunch of people with the same maturity level as him. I’m sure he’s a _revolutionary_ gym teacher.” 

“I would love to see you try and do that job, dude. You couldn’t keep up with those kids if you died trying.” Kyle fires back with a smirk that quickly fades when Cartman retaliates, turning to him and wiping his greasy fingers on his sweater. “Dude, what the fuck!” 

Kenny stifles a laugh and draws Kyle closer to him as he fumingly examines the smudges on his top. “Conceal, don’t feel, Ky.” 

On that note, the group decides to vacate the table and start toward the rollercoaster Butters suggested. They fall in line together as usual, Kyle and Stan in front complaining together, Kenny and Cartman in the middle making fun of bypassers together, and Butters behind, joining in with the jesting here and there. It’s a comfortable routine that never fails to play itself out, and he smiles at the familiarity of it all. It is like having his family back. 

The line for the new rollercoaster is predictably long, curving out of the roped off section beside the attraction. Nobody minded the wait, however, as they arrived early enough to grant themselves ample time to enjoy everything they wanted to get through. 

“Dude, it’s fine,” Stan grumbles, steering Kenny’s attention away from an anecdote Butters is sharing with him. He watches in amusement as Kyle’s raised hands attempt to swipe the rouge strands of hair atop Stan’s head that always stick up after a while. “It’s a _cowlick._ ” 

“Well, I can see the top of your head, and it’s annoying me.” Kyle returns, continuing his impossible mission despite Stan’s dramatic eye rolls and huffs. 

“Sorry if this is weird,” a girl in line before them addresses with a sheepish smile, which is pretty much a guarantee that it will be weird, “but you two are such a cute couple!”

Kyle drops his hands immediately and scowls at the pair of teenagers giggling about the two. Stan stifles a laugh with a fist against his lips as his friend addresses the misunderstanding, “We are not a couple! I’m so fucking tired of people thinking we’re dating just because I’m trying to _fix_ your hair. That’s just being a good friend and not letting you walk around looking ridiculous!” 

“Gee, thanks.” Stan mutters, addressing the girl who made the comment, eyes now wipe and lip quivering, “don’t mind him, he’s just mad because him and his _actual_ boyfriend aren’t nearly as intimate as we are.” 

The girl lets out a breath of relief and grins graciously at Stan before sighing, “I’m really sorry I assumed, sorry,” 

“No worries!” Stan amends Kyle’s fussiness scaring the poor kid; though Kenny thinks it will still likely traumatize her into never calling any couple _cute_ again. 

Cartman lets out a howling laugh at the exchange and shakes his head, “I told you guys you act like an old lesbian couple.” 

Kyle sends him a fiery glare straight from Hell, “Shut your fucking mouth before I punch it.” 

“Mellow out, dude,” Stan chortles, patting his shoulder. “It’s definitely not the first or last time this has happened.” 

Cartman sniggers and shakes his head, his two different colored eyes flipping back to Kenny, “I don’t get why they don’t just stop kidding themselves and elope.” 

“Heck, if it weren’t for Craig, I’d’ve thought they were in a secret relationship! Or at least friends with benefits,” Butters adds. 

“Sick, Butters, don’t make me picture that.” Cartman shudders, crossing his thick arms over his chest. 

Kenny sends him a half-hearted smirk, “Dude, don’t pretend like you haven’t had that thought all on your own. I’ve seen your diary.” 

“Fuck off, Kenny.” 

He does, slipping into silence as he watches Stan continue his attempts to soothe Kyle’s temper as the line slowly drags forward. As everyone’s said, this is not an unusual occurrence or topic. Kyle and Stan have had a particularly strong, unbreakable bond since any of them could remember. Kenny spent a decent few years of his childhood desperately trying to insert himself into the duo’s intense form of friendship, but often found himself left out and forced to settle for Cartman. Eventually he formed his own strong bond with the other castaway from Stan and Kyle’s bubble, no longer settling for spending time with Cartman. He actually felt far more understood by him than anyone else thus far, and Butters joining their mix was their much needed anchor to morality. 

As they all grew older, however, Kenny felt like he did manage to form the connection with Stan he always strived for when he provided a shoulder to cry on and an understanding ear to listen when it came to his struggles with mental illness. Kyle never quite provided adequate support or compassion when it came to these matters; not for a lack of trying, but for a genuine inability to empathize. Kenny lived a similar reality, and made himself very available to Stan whenever he needed someone to vent to about the real shit. He in turn found himself opening up to Stan in a way he never thought he would with anyone. 

He is pretty sure this was when the strong longing for Stan’s reciprocated love and affection began, though he did not realize it until he was a few states away playing football for a prominent college team. 

Even with all of this in mind, Kenny cannot help the sinking feeling in the base of his stomach the ordeal caused him. It was somewhere between desire and jealousy, and therefore pretty fucking incomprehensible. He feels kind of bitchy for being upset about it, so he definitely does not verbalize his thoughts. Even when Cartman asks, “You good?” when they near the front of the line and he has yet to speak up in a few minutes. 

Kenny locks gazes with his friend and flashes him his rehearsed-to-perfection fake smile. “All good in the hood, my man.” 

“Good, ‘cause I’m not bailing on this rollercoaster just to comfort you when they find out you’re too short to ride.” Cartman teases, earning a chuckle from Butters. 

“Fine, but then I’m done comforting you when all the girls you try to fuck bail on you when they find out your dick’s too small to ride.” Kenny retorts, instinctively holding out his hands to defend himself from the shove he will inevitably endure. 

They earn a matronly warning look from Kyle when they engage in a slap-fight that is way more subdued than usual. Still they heed the cue to knock it off and resort to continuing to take verbal jabs at one another. 

It sort of cheers Kenny up, but he thinks today is just going to be mentally exhausting for him in terms of his feelings for Stan. Each time he looks at him, that sinking feeling returns, and each time he witnesses him interacting with Kyle, that shameful jealousy joins. 

After the ride that Butters enjoyed way too much, they decide to check out the other rides while they are in the area. He is grateful for the continued distraction from his internal battles via the entertainment of the various attractions and the enjoyment of time spent with his friends. Despite this, he is also grateful when Kyle’s boyfriend arrives and to likely obtain the majority of his attention. 

“What’s good, guys!” Clyde exclaims as they stroll up to meet them. Kyle and Craig share a quick kiss as Clyde slaps everyone else’s hands. 

Kenny really admires Clyde. He is the only person in the entire history of everything that became a more positive, upbeat person after puberty, and is now an unwaveringly friendly and kind ray of sunshine that is still willing to occasionally get up to antics with himself and Cartman. The man has yet to change despite the years of aging; even physically, as he maintains his boyishly handsome facial features. 

For this reason, Craig and Clyde’s close relationship was an enigma to Kenny. Craig was perhaps the grumpiest, laziest person he had ever met; according to Kyle, however, he is secretly incredibly sweet and thoughtful. Kenny wonders if Clyde was privy to this side of him as it is the only explanation for their long standing bromance. 

“Ken,” Stan addresses him in a low voice and a gentle elbow-nudge, taking his gaze away from Clyde’s animated explanation of how he came to work for their former elementary school. He discreetly shows him a glimpse of the mini car bottles of tequila stashed in his hoodie’s pocket. Kenny smirks as he pulls his navy blue Broncos jersey back down over the pouch. “For slushies later.” 

“You beautiful bastard,” Kenny remarks in a whisper, offering his knuckles for a fistbump. 

“First, I’m being dragged to some stupid farm animal pagent Craig is photographing.” Stan groans, adding, “Kyle’s making me go.” 

Kenny hates the way his heart drops at the prospect of Stan going off on his own with Kyle and Kyle’s boyfriend and Kyle’s boyfriend best friend, on a completely different plane of existence, stuck in the past. He pushes away the completely melodramatic feelings and chuckles, “That sounds awful, dude. I won’t be offended if ya need to down it all just to get through that.” 

Stan sighs and narrows his stare at the redhead who is gesturing for him to follow. “I guess that’s my cue. Don’t get slushies without me!” 

Kenny genuinely would not dream of it. 

“I can’t believe Craig is getting _paid_ to those shitty, close up animal pictures. If I wanted to see that, I’d watch one of those home video TV shows with the hosts that always seemed coked out of their mind for no reason.” Cartman snorts as he, Kenny, and Butters begin strolling along the meandering paths through the fair. 

“I always liked those clips Craig made! They were pretty adorable,” Butters counterclaims. 

“Craig _and_ Kenny,” Kenny reminds him with a raised index finger pointed to himself, “I was executive producer.” 

“You didn’t produce shit, poor boy. You were 9 and didn’t know what the fuck that meant.” Cartman corrects.

Kenny pouts a lip, “Well someone wouldn’t let me join your guys’ news team.”

“12 years later and you still can’t let it go.” 

“‘Cause I’m obsessed with you, obviously,” Kenny jokes, leaning up to pinch Cartman’s chubby cheek, earning a swat and a laugh. 

The trio wanders aimlessly for a few moments before Butters gets caught up with a few acquaintances Kenny and Cartman do not know. The two drift off on their own, deciding to purchase a couple bottles of water. 

“So, you ready to talk about what crawled up your ass and died?” Cartman asks after a loud gulp of water. 

Kenny grants him a confused expression as they claim an empty bench to rest their legs for a moment. “What’re you talkin’ about?” 

“You’ve been acting like it’s your special time of the month all day,” Cartman explains, doing a shitty job at encouraging Kenny to open up if he weren’t familiar with his style of comfort (which he supposes could be considered tough love, but he finds that term is pretty generous). “Is it about Stan?” 

_Shit_ , Kenny thinks. He nearly forgot that he had confided in Cartman about his feelings for Stan. It was inadvertent, but he was high and in his feelings, and he knows Cartman will not say anything if he asks him a certain way.

Kenny sighs, “Guess there’s no point in lying about it.” 

Cartman makes an _ah-hah_ noise while draining another long sip of water. Kenny begins nursing the ice cold liquid as his friend replies. “It must be pretty shit watching people assume Kyle and him are butt buddies instead of you and him.” When Kenny merely grumbles in agreement, he continues, “That’s probably for the best though, brah. I mean, wouldn’t it be worse if a random stranger acknowledged an unspoken connection between you two? Then it’s all like, oh shit, _is_ there something there?” 

It’s a surprisingly valid point, but all the other man’s credibility flies out the window when he suggests, “You should just tell him.” 

Kenny scoffs, “Fat chance, man. Not worth the risk.” 

“Whatever you say, chickenshit.” 

“I’m not chickenshit, I’m realistic. If he felt the same something would have happened by now.” 

“Not true. Stan is also super chickenshit.” 

“Stop—it’s just not a good idea, okay?” Kenny retorts with finality. 

“Okay then,” Cartman replies, though the cadence in his voice sounds unconvinced. A moment of silence settles between them before Cartman begins imitating the squawks of a chicken with increasing volume. 

“I’m gonna fuckin’ murder you.” Kenny warns, though the reluctant grin across his lips renders the threat empty. 

“ _Bawk bawk bawk!_ ” He continues, now flapping his arms for dramatic effect. 

Kenny chuckles and twists off the lid of his water bottle, “I’m gonna pour this shit on you.” 

“No you won’t, you’re too _chickenshit_ —ay! Kenny, no!” Cartman interrupts himself with a shriek, shrinking away from the tipped bottle in Kenny’s hand coming straight for him. “If you get me wet I’ll kick you in the nuts!” 

“Weird, not what usually happens after I get someone wet.” Kenny remarks with a wink, lowering his drink. Cartman scoffs, settles back down against the back of the bench. Kenny grants him a quick grin, “Thanks for talkin’ to me.” 

“As much as I hate you, I don’t. Just please talk to Stan, I’m tired of watching you pine over him like some weird fanfiction.” 

Kenny wishes it was that easy, but Cartman cannot be right about everything. 

_ 

“These are already amazing on their own, but tequila makes them _so_ much better.” Stan declares before a long sip of his blue raspberry slushie and a spirited hum. 

Kenny smiles at the ring of blue food coloring on Stan’s lips. They have made it halfway up the Ferris Wheel and halfway through their spiked frozen beverages. They watch the sun prepare its descent behind the horizon to allow the moon to take over. The air becomes nippier and thinner as the mechanics of the ride propel them forward. 

“Yeah, I don’t know why a splash of this shit automatically makes any fruit flavored drink significantly more delicious but it is a dangerous phenomenon.” Kenny returns. 

Feelings of joy and contentment wash over him at the opportunity to be in Stan’s presence after he had been released from his duties of keeping Kyle company. He does his best to let those feelings overcome the strange pang of guilt he receives whenever he recalls Cartman’s suggestion to just tell Stan how he feels already. However, each time they meet eyes and Kenny feels completely starstruck under his enticing, ocean blue gaze, he is reminded it is easier said than done. 

By the way Stan’s chuckle has become borderline goofy, Kenny can tell he is tipsy. He is starting to feel it too, though not much, especially with the sobering thought of how nice it feels to have Stan’s thigh pressed up against him. 

“Ken?” 

Stan’s voice snaps him from his thoughts. He turns his head to face him with a smile, “Yeah?” 

“Is there something going on with you?” His demeanor has severely shifted, concern written in his handsome features. “You’ve seemed kind of… I don’t know… sad?” 

Kenny frowns. He doesn’t _mean_ to seem sad. But that is 2/4 of his friends now asking him what is wrong—though Stan went about it in a much kinder way than Cartman. 

Perhaps this whole thing is a lot less manageable than he thought. 

Kenny pauses, doing his best to refocus his courage to admitting his feelings rather than his willingness to do reckless things. It’s _hard_ though. Especially with Stan’s beautiful eyes intently watching the cogs in his head turn, trying to decide whether or not he wants to put their relationship at risk today. 

He never does, but he is tired of feeling sad and stupid and jealous and unsure. He is also extremely grateful for the alcohol now. 

“I’m sorry to be a buzzkill, I’m just… there’s just been somethin’ on my mind a lot lately. It’s really hard to talk about.” Kenny begins, immensely proud of himself for getting this far. He wants to curl into his jacket and disappear, but he is afraid this will not be possible, and he cannot even _walk_ away from the conversation if he needs to—as he is stuck near the peak of a Ferris Wheel. 

Not his best timing. 

Stan hums in understanding. “Do you want to talk about it?” 

“Not really but… I’ll probably fuckin’ go crazy if I don’t.” 

He dares to meet Stan’s eyes again, finding himself surprisingly soothed by the sweet, encouraging smile stretching his lips. Even so, Kenny’s never really done this whole love confession thing before, let alone with one of his best friends. His heart palpitates rapidly. 

“It’s, uh… about this… guy I really like…” It’s a lame way to start, but it’s easier. 

“Oh… do I know him?” Stan wonders, seeming almost deflated. 

Kenny does not really take notice as he has fixed his gaze forward again. He gives a small smirk, “Yeah, kinda. I just… he means so much to me, y’know? We been friends since forever and I don’t wanna do anything that could ruin that, but it’s just eating me alive not knowing if he would even feel the same or if I’m just torturing myself for no reason either way… And you don’t even live here most of the time, so it’s like—“ 

“Wait—‘you’?” Stan interrupts him, making Kenny’s heart stop beating altogether. 

Well, fuck. 

For the second time that night, Kenny sighs, “Well I guess there’s no point in lying.” 

He turns toward Stan again, melting inside at the precious, expectant expression and slightly parted lips. He wets his lips before finally confessing, “I’m kinda in love with you.” 

“Oh, thank god,” Stan exhales in relief, catching Kenny completely off guard. He perks his head to the side quizzically before he expounds upon his reaction. “I honest to god thought you were talking about Kyle. You seemed kind of upset about us getting mistaken as a couple, and when we went off with Craig, so...” 

Kenny chuckles softly and shakes his head, “Yeah, you’re the other common denominator in those scenarios..."

Stan frowns, “I’m sorry, Kenny.” 

“No, it’s all good, I know you guys are just super best bros, or whatever,” Kenny says, trailing off for a moment before a moment of realization strikes, “Wait, so, did that _thank god_ mean…?” 

“Yeah, of course I fucking love you,” Stan assures with a bright grin, reaching a hand out to take Kenny’s. A whirlwind of emotions rushes through Kenny as Stan continues, dragging his thumb tenderly across his knuckles, “I’m pretty sure you were just about the only person who didn’t know. I should’ve told you a long time ago, it’s just, what you said, I would never want to do anything to jeopardize our friendship. But ever since I’ve been away at college, I just… I miss you so much, more than anyone, and more than I ever thought I would, it’s… it’s kind of how I realized.” 

That was all he needed to be completely, undeniably certain that he made the right choice. He had never felt so seen and understood, and could not believe the identical circumstances that brought them toward realization and kept them from confession. It had to mean they’re soulmates; or, at least, it means that they are equally crazy. 

There are a million things Kenny wants to say, all building up and getting stuck in his throat. But, being a person who has always followed the guidelines of actions speak louder than words, he leans into Stan until their lips touch. He kisses him soft and sweet, yet full of emotion that makes his eyes squeeze shut. Stan reciprocates with equal force, grip tightening on Kenny’s hand. 

They kiss several more times, nothing interrupting them but their impending descent and the intensifying breeze. Once they hop down from the Ferris Wheel’s cars and toss their empty slushie cups, they lean into one another for warmth and to feel as much as one another as possible. 

The pair decide to wait on a bench for the others to finish up their activities, sharing a cigarette and conversation coated with compliments and flirtations and interrupted by more kisses. Kenny is definitely on cloud 9, and still feeling like things have gone by so fast. But it felt natural and right to be so close to Stan, and to finally taste his lips and whisper sweet nothings into his ear. 

“Ugh, dude,” Stan starts with a frown. “I didn’t think about how annoying Cartman is gonna be about this.”

Kenny laughs and pats Stan’s leg reassuringly. “So is Kyle.” 

“Touché.” Stan concedes with a fond smile. 

Kenny is kind of looking forward to their friends being annoying about his new relationship.


End file.
